Chapter 21: One for the Fools
Lorelai watched the crowd start to thin as intermission began, and gently tapped Luke's arms which had situated themselves tightly around her waist under the quilt. She'd expected to miss the first half of the show making out with her boyfriend, but instead, she'd ended up cuddling with her fiancé who'd taken a genuine interest in the show's storyline. Quite an unexpected evening all around.
"Wanna let me loose for a second so I can try to call Rory?"
"Oh, yeah," Luke nodded, leaning back on his elbows.
Lorelai leaned forward, reaching for her purse and pulling out her cell phone. She felt her heart rate increasing as she flipped it open and hit the speed dial for Rory, who answered surprisingly quickly.
"Mom! Hi!" Rory's voice came through excitedly.
Lorelai's eyes narrowed as she looked back at Luke, wondering if he'd talked to her about it in advance.
"Hey, so how do you feel about Luke officially joining the family sometime soon?"
"Considering I'm the one who gave him permission to marry you, I feel pretty good about it," Rory replied smugly.
"You... what?" Lorelai laughed, raising an eyebrow at Luke as she pulled the phone away from her mouth slightly, "You asked her permission?"
Luke shrugged, "Seemed appropriate."
She shook her head, laughing, "Well, thanks for your blessing, kid."
"You're welcome. I made sure to have him clarify that he was asking to marry you, not just get engaged to you, too. He seemed pretty serious about that."
"Yeah, I think that's a safe bet this time," Lorelai smiled.
"Well then, congratulations, bride-to-be," Rory added softly, "Man. You know, I knew this was coming. April and I were both pressing him for details a few weeks ago, but he wouldn't budge. I knew I wouldn't be there, but it still kinda stings."
Lorelai looked down sadly, "I know. And you realize, someday, it's probably going to be the same for me. You'll probably be in..." she glanced over at Luke, "Turkey, or something and I'll get a phone call in the middle of the night."
"Turkey?"
"Luke's subconscious thinks you'll be in Turkey."
"Well, thank Luke's subconscious. The food there would be ten times better than that of Eddie's Place." Rory frowned as Eric gestured frantically, pointing at his watch. "Mom, I have to get back inside, there's another event to cover. Give Luke a hug for me and tell him I said congratulations. Ooh, and tell him I expect a date set within the week and that he should carve it into stone."
Lorelai chuckled, "Call me again when you get a chance."
"Tomorrow. Probably early evening. Love you, Mom."
Luke looked a little sad as he watched Lorelai brush her thumb over the phone as she thought about her daughter. "You know," he said, "Rory and April wouldn't let up about this while they were here. I can't help but wonder if I should've just done it and waited on the ring. I thought it was gonna take longer than it did."
"No, it was perfect as it was. And as hard as this is, they're gonna go on and live their own lives apart from us... much as I want to involve Rory in every life event... that's just... how growing up works. For me and her." She held out her phone, "If you talked to April about this, she's probably dying to know the deed is done."
Luke nodded, taking the phone and holding out his arm for Lorelai to move back against him. She slid back into place, pulling the quilt along with her and leaned against Luke's chest as she gazed down at her ring. If she ever needed physical proof of Luke's full commitment this time, it was there on her hand. She still couldn't believe he'd use something as special as his mother's ring. She also couldn't believe he'd managed to sneak her original ring right out from under her nose... and that she'd even tried to dispose of it in the first place.
Luke pressed his lips to Lorelai's neck briefly while the phone rang, watching her inspect the ring's tiny details. He realized he should probably call Liz sometime tomorrow as well.
"Dad?! Did you do it?!"
He chuckled, "I did."
Luke immediately ripped the phone from his ear as a piercing shriek came from the earpiece.
"How did you do it?!"
"At the Dragonfly on the porch. The first place we, uh, decided to kinda become a couple." Luke felt Lorelai chuckle softly at his choice of words, while he felt his cheeks warm slightly. Talking to his daughter about kissing was never going to stop being awkward.
"And you really did it on the day of your first date. You are so adorably sappy, Dad," April giggled. "So what are you doing to celebrate?"
"Ah, actually, we're sitting on the roof of the Dragonfly watching that show."
"On the roof?! Ohhh, that's so romantic!"
Luke shook his head, "Is April there? The girl who only got excited about Mandel's Rules?"
"Mendel's Law," she laughed, correcting him. "And she grew into a girl who gets excited about genetics and romance. I'm really, really glad this happened, and really glad I get to be a part of it this time. Is there a date yet? Is it going to be this year? Next year? Rory and I will both be there around Christmas, and I know Lorelai loves the snow, but next year, you have your full pick of dates-"
Luke's eyes widened, "Woah, kiddo, getting ahead of yourself a little. I asked, she said yes, and we watched the first act of the show. I'll give you other details as we've got 'em."
"And tell her we'll be emailing her and Rory with all sorts of planning questions, too." Lorelai interjected, "They'll be involved. And present."
"Did you hear that?" Luke asked.
"Yeah, I did. Tell her I said thanks. Oh! Hang on a sec," April moved the phone away from her mouth to answer her mom, who stood in her doorway. "Jade said her mom can pick me up in an hour, does that work?"
"Perfect," Anna gave her a thumbs up, "I'm headed to the store, have her drop you off there. Who's on the phone?"
"Dad." April bit her lip and frowned slightly, uncertain whether or not to give further details. She'd been working really hard at trying to make things less awkward between her and her mom, and one of the ways she'd been managing to do that was by mentioning nothing about her dad or Connecticut. She'd even managed to intercept the boarding school mailings before her mom could get to them.
"What's that look?" Anna asked warily.
"He proposed to Lorelai tonight," April couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face, "We were nagging him like crazy about it, and the ring was finally finished, so he picked it up today and popped the question tonight."
Anna nodded slowly, smiling a little, "Tell them I said congratulations."
April eyed her cautiously, "Yeah, okay. So I'll see you at eight, then..." She moved the phone back up, still watching her mother's face for some kind of delayed reaction, but failed to see one. "Sorry Dad. Just had to clear some plans for tonight with Mom. Mom says congrats to you both."
Luke chuckled at April's flat tone, shaking his head, "Tell her I - we - said thank you. You being nice to her?"
"Yeeeessss," April rolled her eyes. "I need to get my stuff together for tonight. Have to work on this really lame group poetry project. Our poster has glitter, like we're in kindergarten or something. I thought high school was supposed to be more interesting than this. So you've saved my day by giving me something to actually be happy about."
"Okay, go get your stuff done. Bye, April."
"Bye, Lorelai's fiancé."
Luke ended the call, laughing, and slid the phone into his pants pocket as he wrapped his arms around Lorelai again.
She tilted her head and kissed the side of his neck softly whispering, "Hello, Lorelai's fiancé."
"Hello, Luke's future wife."
"So, you're liking the show?" Lorelai asked, watching the crowd as people began to make their way back to their seats.
"It's interesting. It's more like a play with singing. Which doesn't really interest me either, but, you know, it's uh... Sondheim," Luke added nonchalantly.
"Yes, I do know," Lorelai eyed him strangely and bit her lip to prevent the giggle that was desperate to escape.
"Hey, guys?" Gabby's head appeared through the open window from the attic. "If one of you doesn't mind heading over here, I've absconded with some food for you. I realized when I stuck the cooler up there for you that I forgot to put food in it, and the last thing I need is my boss breaking her neck drunkenly falling off the roof."
Lorelai stood and walked over, "Oh, but what a sight. You're a gem, I didn't even think about food, I thought we'd have time to grab some beforehand."
"Uhhhh. Your hand got real pretty since the last time I saw it," Gabby's eyes widened as she looked up at Lorelai. "Oh my god. That's why Luke told me to not call off the Kirk search, didn't he? Oh my god, Lorelai!" she squealed, stealing a glance at Luke, whose red face was focused on his program, which he could scarcely see in the low light. Gabby giggled, "Let me see it, let me see it!"
Lorelai held out her hand as her young assistant gasped, "Ooh, it's vintage! Very, very you, I love it! Oh, my god." She glared over at Luke, "If you had told me you had this up your sleeve, I could've made a million other arrangements for you two." She grinned back up at Lorelai, "Although, this turned out to be pretty perfect. Did you have any idea this was happening tonight?"
"Not the slightest clue," Lorelai shook her head. "And I think my jaw left a dent in the Dragonfly's porch, I was so shocked when I saw the box in his hand."
"God, you're practically glowing. Details on Monday. Here, take your food, I need to get back downstairs. By the way, keep your eye out for Michel's date. I swear to god, she must be a Celine Dion impersonator," Gabby grinned, passing the heavy basket through the window. "Last thing before I go. Do not touch a damn thing related to this event. There's nothing that needs doing that I can't handle, and you should enjoy your night, especially now. If I don't see you later, congratulations and I'll see you on Monday."
Lorelai saluted Gabby and turned back to Luke, grinning widely, "We have food. And if we're lucky, some of this is from the VIP dinner earlier, a combination of Sookie's best work and that fancy catering company from New York."
She set the basket down and pulled out some silverware and a few containers, gasping as she came across a familiar carafe. "Coffee! Gabby is officially my favorite employee."
Luke chuckled, grabbing a fork, and took a few bites from one of the containers. Lorelai moved next to him as the two of them ate and continued watching the second act. She occasionally glanced over at him to shake her head in amazement at his attention to the performance.
"Grandmother, I've watched and I've watched, and I haven't noticed the night smiling."
"Young eyes are not ideal for watching, they stray too much. The night has already smiled twice."
"It has? Twice? For the young and the fools?"
"The smile for the fools was particularly broad tonight."
A few lines later, the cast stood for their bows, the actor playing Frederik thanking the crowd and making a brief speech about the charity before the lights went up.
Lorelai turned her head into Luke's neck, breathing him in one more time before standing, "Unfortunately, we do need to get back down there. I have to make an appearance at the VIP after-party to meet my parents, and I want to make sure Jackson kept Sookie from wandering back into the kitchen. And, honestly, I'm dying to see what's up with Michel's date."
The two gathered their things and left them in the attic, Lorelai pausing to quickly switch out her shoes one more time, then made their way outdoors to the VIP tent. Lorelai couldn't help but smile proudly at how beautiful the place looked. Swaths of gauzy white and dark blue fabric woven with little white lights accented the area with beautiful chandeliers hanging from the tops of the canopies. The rest of the area subtly continued the starry night sky theme as well.
Lorelai wove her fingers between Luke's as they walked through the crowds, looking around for familiar faces; eventually spotting her father's large frame, she tugged Luke in his direction.
She tapped her mother's shoulder as Emily turned with a brilliant smile, "Lorelai! There you are. I was looking for you at intermission, but Sookie said you'd given away your seats!"
"They were sold out, and I managed to score us the best spot in the place," she grinned, "We watched it from the roof."
Emily's initial reaction was to grimace at the idea of a dusty rooftop, but finding no trace of dirt on her daughter or Luke, she glanced out at the inn and her expression softened, "Well, that sounds lovely. I'm glad you've managed to enjoy yourselves a little."
"Uh, yeah, you could say that." Lorelai reached for her mother's hand, curling her fingers over it and pulling it up within Emily's vision.
She gasped slightly when she saw the ring, "Oh, Lorelai."
Emily knew she should feel uneasy about this. And she knew after she thought about it a little more, it would worry her until she saw Rory sign the witness line of a marriage certificate. For now, she couldn't help but give herself over to the moment she'd waited for years to have - not the engagement itself - but a moment when her daughter was actually including her in an important part in her life, all on her own, face to face.
The glittering diamonds blurred slightly, and she reached to hug Lorelai tightly as she whispered, "I am so happy for you."
Lorelai had not been prepared for her mother's reaction. Though she anticipated a positive response given the changes in their relationship over the last few months, she hadn't quite expected the emotion behind it, and hugged her mother back just as tightly.
Richard grinned, shaking Luke's hand, and Emily caught sight of her husband's expression as she pulled back from her daughter. "He knew." She glanced at Luke, "You told him?"
"Now, Emily, he gave me a slight hint last week at dinner. He didn't say when, but I had a feeling..." Richard beamed, leaning down to kiss his daughter's cheek.
Emily bit back a comment about it being customary to ask the bride's parents for permission. She knew it was an absurd demand to make of a couple whose average age was over forty, and at the moment she was more annoyed at Richard for failing to share his prior knowledge. She focused back on Lorelai's ring and cocked her head slightly, "This looks almost like your old one?"
Lorelai nodded, "He combined the old one with his mother's wedding ring."
"Luke, It's beautiful." Emily smiled as Luke thanked her. "Does Rory know?"
"Since last week," Luke admitted, "We've had an agreement about this for awhile."
"And we called both girls at intermission. Other than my assistant catching sight of the ring when she brought us dinner, you're the only other people we've told," Lorelai looked at her mother meaningfully, and Emily returned her look with a grateful smile. "I need to find Sookie and Jackson before they sneak out. I'm sure we'll have plenty to talk about next Friday."
"Yes, of course," Richard replied, "I believe I saw them attempting to dissuade Michel's date from sampling the punch."
They said their goodbyes, and began making their way toward the dessert and beverage tables.
"You actually allowed Founder's Day Punch at this event?" Luke scoffed as he saw the familiar pink liquid being served a few feet away.
"Patty's influence. She wouldn't let up about it, so it's here. My suggestion to provide a warning sign got shot down."
"Lorelai!" Sookie squealed as she weaved through several people to throw her arms around her friend, "We did it! And we managed a Kirk-free evening!"
"We did!" Lorelai beamed back, noticing Jackson struggling through the crowd several feet away as he followed his wife. "Though Luke did have to chase Kirk away at one point."
"Oh god, please tell me no rosebushes were involved this time," Sookie gave Luke a once-over, noting he didn't look any worse for the wear, "I'm forever damaged from that experience."
"No rosebushes, but there was kissing on the porch again," Lorelai held up her hand, and Sookie barely held back a shout of joy, nearly tackling Lorelai in another hug as she drew amused glances from the people around them. Sookie turned to tug Luke down for the same treatment. Jackson finally caught up and congratulated the couple as well.
As Sookie and Lorelai's chatter began to veer from giddy discussion over Luke and Lorelai's engagement to work-related analysis of the evening, the men exchanged a look, and Jackson reminded Sookie they needed to relieve their babysitter before it got too late.
Before Luke and Lorelai could take their leave, several people involved in the production, from the talent to the organizers to the stage managers, stopped to talk to Lorelai, everyone proudly congratulating each other on a job well done.
Luke noticed Patty standing nearby talking to an older gentleman with silvered hair, and a stunning woman whose red curls cascaded down her shoulders. Luke realized it was one of the few times he'd seen Patty speak to a man without a heavily flirtatious tone, in fact she almost sounded reverent.
As Lorelai spoke to yet another person she'd gotten to know throughout the planning process, she proudly introduced Luke as her fiancé. Luke watched Patty's head whip around, a shocked, yet gleeful expression on her face. She raised an eyebrow and pointed meaningfully at Luke before returning her focus to her friends. They glanced his way, and he realized Patty was likely explaining her reaction.
Feeling a little awkward, he smiled back, then turned his attention to the people in front of him as he noticed Chad and his boyfriend had been talking to Lorelai for a few minutes. Chad reached up to cuff Luke's arm with his hand, "Now I get why you were so nervous before the performance! Congratulations, man!"
"Thanks," Luke laughed, "It was less the act itself and more figuring out how it was going to happen. How did the sound work out?"
Chad beamed, "Sounded good to me! I'll be handing the masters over on Monday, and the rest is out of my hands, but I'm sure Patty will keep you in the loop. How'd you like the show?"
"Actually, it wasn't bad."
Chad laughed, "I think that's as good as I'm gonna get. All right, we've got a long drive ahead of us, and we both have matinees to work tomorrow. It was wonderful working with you, Lorelai, and it was good to finally meet you, Luke. May the end of our baseball season hurt as little as possible." As Luke started to reply, he saw Patty making her way over; Chad laughed again and waved as he left, knowing better than to try staving off Patty when she had such a determined look on her face.
"Lucas William Danes, tell me it was you this time," Patty exclaimed as she grabbed Lorelai's hand.
"It was him this time," Lorelai announced as Patty inspected the ring.
"Gorgeous. I approve." She dropped Lorelai's hand and put her hands on her hips expectantly, "Well, I'm going to need details, children, news doesn't spread itself."
"I'll leave you to it, I'm going to get a drink, Lorelai, you want anything?" Luke asked, eager to escape Patty's inquires.
"Gin martini, please," she grinned.
As Luke stepped away, the people Patty had been talking to stopped to wish him congratulations and he smiled back, thanking them. He heard a few murmurs from behind him and realized they must be important. He decided he'd ask Patty about them when he got the chance.
A few drinks later, Luke and Lorelai were finally making their way back to the inn.
"Cab?" Luke asked, knowing they were both just a bit too far beyond the point of tipsy to drive.
"Uh, no. We have a room."
"The roof was romantic, but I'm not sleepin' up there without a tent."
"Now there's an idea," Lorelai giggled, "No, we have an actual room. You're not the only one who was feeling nostalgic and sappy tonight."
Luke followed Lorelai up the stairs and she paused in front of room seven, turning to face him before unlocking the door, "The night of the test run, I had a feeling things might be... well, I didn't know what was going to happen, but I knew something was, and I wondered if maybe things between you and I would lead up here. Of course, we know how that all went, but I did refer to the room as lucky number seven earlier that day, making a conversation with Michel turn very awkward." She reached up to kiss him, pulling back just as Luke began to pull her more tightly against him. She raised her eyebrow flirtatiously, "So how do you feel about revisiting that idea?"
Lorelai felt herself melt slightly as he gave her a heated smile and gently slid the key out of her hand, unlocking the door, himself.
Hours later, as Lorelai watched Luke sleep beside her, she couldn't help but think that the night's smile for the fools was, indeed, particularly broad that night.
Author's Notes: For fellow musical theatre geeks of the hardcore variety, you may be able to identify the strangers Patty was talking to. Major cheeseball moment, and it's really just there for me. Ah, self-indulgence. For everyone else, it's a cute moment of Luke being congratulated by complete strangers ;)
This roughly marks the halfway point for this fic. I hope you're enjoying reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it and editing it.
Mega big huge thanks AGAIN to everyone who has left reviews and sent PMs. You have no idea how fun it is to see your reactions. I wrote these last few chapters all the way back in September (zero relation to the dates, btw, sheer coincidence), so having others read it, love it, and share their thoughts is both strange and wonderful. AND a much-deserved shout-out to Handful of Barbie, who caught a glaring error in another chapter and mentioned it so fast I was able to fix it before too many people saw it. *grin*
More to come this weekend!